National Health Service (Pharmaceutical Services) (Appliances) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 come into force

The Regulations make amendments which relate to the supply of appliances and include provisions that apply generally to the supply of all types of appliance available under an NHS prescription and other provisions that relate to only the supply of a particular group of appliances, described as “specified appliances”.

Specified appliances are a group of appliances that includes products such as stoma appliances, catheter appliances and incontinence appliances, and where these are supplied under an NHS prescription, particular additional services also need to be provided.

The changes affect the supply of all types of appliances. These include revision of the arrangements for pharmacies providing advice, requiring the pharmacist to look into previous prescribing patterns when giving appropriate advice to patients on re-ordering appliances on repeatable prescriptions on the importance of only requesting the items the patients actually need.

Dispensing appliance contractors (DACs) are given powers, for the first time, to dispense against repeatable prescriptions, and their dispensing arrangements are generally updated to accommodate that change. DACs are also, for the first time, required to participate in systems of clinical governance, which are similar to the clinical governance framework already in place for pharmacies.

The framework requires DACs to undertake a number of programmes, including a patient and public involvement programme, a risk management programme and a clinical effectiveness programme.

For more information on the legal services for pharmacies, please contact Roy Botterill on roy.botterill@harveyingram.com or call 0116 257 4431.